So Long Summer

So Long Summer August 31, 2019

Filed under: Simply Me — Amy Scott @ 6:14 pm

The end of summer is right around the corner. It’s been an amazing summer. I’m sad that it’s almost over, but I’m also ready to dive into our new routine and find out what our family normal will be like with a preschooler and a kindergartner. Honestly, before having kids and through the baby years, summer just felt like any other time of the year. Now that my boys are older, summer holds a million possibilities for adventure and for fun. I feel like I get to be a kid again as I live through these summers with them. We’ve seen new places, we’ve had so many play dates and we’ve checked off a lot of summer bucket list items. We really maximized our time.

So how is our summer finishing up? We made it through four weeks of swimming lessons. Owen passed level one and will be on to level two next summer! We made it to Lattin’s Cider Mill to see the animals and get doughnuts. There were lots of birthday parties to attend and out of town family to visit with. The boys made it back to the Ape Caves to do the longer, more challenging cave. The shorter cave was enough for me so a friend and I went to Hobby Lobby instead. I went to a volunteer orientation at Owen’s school and got to tour school. We had Owen’s back to school BBQ where we dropped off school supplies in his classroom and met his teacher briefly. I met with an editor friend to talk through the next steps for my book. I took my Wednesday night class to visit the youth gathering. It looks like most of my girls will be moving up. I’m always sad to say good bye to the girls in my class. However, I have a large group of 4th graders moving up, so it seems like while I’m saying good bye to quite a few girls, I will also be saying hello to quite a few. I helped with credentialing interviews for our network. Today we went on a local train ride as a end of summer special treat. We sure do know how to hop from thing to thing.

Yesterday was one of those blessed days where we stayed home all day with no where to go. It was heavenly. I stayed in my pajamas all day. I got the house decorated for fall. I made a blackberry pie. I finished a book. Such a good day! Jeremy and I both worked on resetting things for fall around the house. Jeremy took some time to organize the garage and well house. The boys bounced inside and outside depending on their mood. Days at home are my favorite. My absolute favorite. A day at home restores my soul in a way that few things can. I can ‘t replicate the rest I find in quiet, home days. Which is yet again a good reminder that these days need to happen more often. We’ll see how well I do this fall. We are heading into hunting season for Jeremy. I’ll be in chauffeur mode while Jeremy is out in the woods. Which means I’m leaning towards keeping my Saturdays quieter to make up for the fact that I will be out of the house daily for school pick up and drop offs.

Our whole world changes on Tuesday. Graham will head off to preschool for his first full week of Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday classes. Owen will have his parent, teacher, student conference on Thursday morning. The first full day of school for Owen will be Friday. Then MOPS & MOMSnext kicks off the following week while we have our first full week of both boys at school… Say a prayer for us!

I will admit that I’m having all the kindergarten mom feelings. I don’t necessarily want more babies. I just wish my babies could be babies again. If there could be a cycle that goes from birth through preschool and then starts all over again. I’ve loved these years. Maybe not the sleepless nights, but I’ve loved the growth and curiosity of young childhood. I’ve loved being home with my littles. I will never regret the days we spent home in our pajamas watching PBS Kids and eating goldfish crackers. I never thought I would feel so strongly about this season, but truly, it’s been one of the biggest blessings and honors I’ve had in my life. I am optimistic that my kids will keep getting more amazing and I will come days look on the elementary years and say the same thing – they were the best. It’s normal to crave the familiar and not want to walk into the unknown. I keep reminding myself that it won’t be unknown for long. Soon I will be going with the flow like a pro. At least that is my hope. I’ll keep you posted!

Catching up with my lovely friend, Mrs. O’Hara! This was our first time hanging out since her wedding. It was great to hear about her new season of life!

So happy he passed level one at swimming lessons! On to level two next summer!

Family Friday Fun at Lattin’s Cider Mill

Mad scientist birthday party for a friend.

These three boys! We call them The Triplets with their Oct/Nov/Dec birthdays. They hit the milestones together – welcome to kindergarten, Class of 2032.